TIME AND TIME AGAIN
by deathgeonous
Summary: What if Sailor Pluto had been mortally wounded in the attack on the Moon Kingdom when it fell? What would have happened if she had died from those wounds? What would have changed?
1. TIME ENOUGH TO DIE, TIME ENOUGH TO LIVE

AN: Note to self. Stop coming up with new ideas! Well this idea hit me after reading a fic search for a very old fic or something on the Temple of Ranma's Senshi Seifuku. They hadn't found it yet but it gave me an idea. The search was for Ranma as a reincarnation of Setsuna, and I thought 'Hmm, how interesting. I want to read that!' unfortunately the idea for my own version of the idea wouldn't leave me alone, so I came up with one while half awake in my bed the next morning. As those times of ideas usually turn out to be my best ones, I consented with my overactive muse to start on it. Damn me.

Summery: What if Sailor Pluto was mortally wounded in the fall of the Moon Kingdom and had died? What would have happened? How would things change?

TIME AND TIME AGAIN

CHAPTER ONE

TIME ENOUGH TO DIE, TIME ENOUGH TO LIVE

Phoenix Mountain: the present

It was looking bad for one Ranma Saotome. He was spent. He knew that he had given it his all, and that it hadn't been enough. Maybe, that's just maybe he could have won against the Phoenix Lord if he had gone all out in the beginning instead of treating this like a just another normal fight to start off with. Maybe if he had realized from the start that this was a fight that could only have one survivor things would have been different and he could have saved Akane and the others. But instead he had been cocky an overconfident as usual. And now everyone would die after he got hit with this attack that he was too spent to block.

'Huh, figures that I'd end up dieing in my cursed form.' Ranma thought as the ball of fire streaked towards the, at the moment, female Ranma 'My troubles started in this form, and now they end in it. Hope you liked the joke on me all you watching Kamis. I look forward to getting to show all of you my displeasure.' Ranma thought darkly as the gigantic ball of fire came ever closer.

Then a bright white light took over Ranma's vision and she thought this was the end of her life.

Castle Charron on Pluto: twenty five thousand and some change years ago

The bright white light dimmed and Ranma could see again. Though what she saw confused her. She was in what looked to be the ruins of a castle's throne room with a dieing woman on its throne.

"Where am I, hell?" Ranma asked fearfully.

The dieing woman laughed. "Not far off. This is Castle Charron on Pluto, over twenty five thousand years in your past."

"What!?!" Ranma asked shocked. "What, how?"

"I don't have much time Ranma, for my life is slipping away quickly. I need to tell you something and then I have an offer for you. You are my reincarnation. Be quiet and just listen Ranma." The woman said seeing Ranma about to speak. Ranma stayed quiet. "I am Sailor Pluto and the Senshi of Time. I have a limited control of time, which was how I was able to bring you here. I am responsible for guarding and watching over the very force of time it's self. If it is left unguarded countless horrible things will happen as a result. You, as my reincarnation, are the only one capable of taking over for me. But it must be by your choice." She stopped to cough up some dark blood. Ranma was there and holding her in a flash.

"I have enough power left for me to do one of two things Ranma. One is to send you back to where you came from at the moment that I took you. You will most probably die, yet that is not certain. The other is to send you to the Gates of Time which are in a sub dimension attached to this one that only I can reach. If I do that, you will be trapped there until you have mastered your powers as the new Senshi of Time well enough to leave it. It could be years." The woman said coughing up yet more even darker blood.

"I have moments left Ranma. You must decide now and quickly, for I will have to send you back to where you came from if you don't decide before I expire." She said looking at Ranma with blood that looked to be black trickling down her mouth.

Ranma was in a dilemma. She just didn't have enough information to make an informed choice, and did not have the time to get it. She just knew to things. One, if she went back to where she had been taken from, she'd die, followed by every one else there. Two, bad things would happen if she did not accept this offer. So Ranma, to her limited knowledge, had no choice. If she and her friends were to live, and other horrible, by this woman's words, things were not to happen, she had to accept.

"I'll do it." Ranma told the dieing woman.

"You know not the responsibility which you have taken on, but learn it you shall." The dieing woman said cryptically. "Good bye Ranma. I think you will find your instructor quite interesting." And with another white flash, Ranma was gone.

As Sailor Pluto died that day on her throne, she smiled, for she just had the clearest vision of the future she had ever seen. Two in fact. One was what would have happened if she had not died this day. And while that future had been bright, it was like a candle comparing it's self to a star that was the future Ranma would help the reincarnations of the children of the other Senshi bring in. Sailor Pluto died happily in the knowledge that the future was a great one and that time it's self was being guarded by the best and last guardian there would ever be.

And then she vanished herself, being thrust forward in time by the remnants of Queen Serenity's spell which had already thrust the children of the Senshi to the future where they would become the Senshi of that time. As she had no child, she was the only choice for the spell, and so she too went forward. But the spell being weaker now, and having been designed for the children of the Senshi and not the Senshi them selves, something went slightly wrong. Pluto ended up being born a few years ahead of everyone else and wound up in a male reincarnation named Ranma Saotome instead of a female one like she was supposed too. But then again, some mistakes are for the best.

The Gates of Time: time does not flow here: time is here

Ranma blinked and saw she was now in a dark void and in front of a large circular stone hoop with something black in it. Turning around she saw what looked to be a slightly older by a few years version of her cursed form in a rather short Fuku and looking rather amused.

"Are you me?" Ranma asked.

"Yes." Ranma two answered with a smirk.

"My cursed form doesn't get any taller?" Ranma asked.

"Nope." Ranma two answered looking slightly annoyed at that.

"And that Fuku…" Ranma started.

"Is the uniform you have to wear while going about the duties of the Senshi of Time, yes. Sucks big time in my opinion." Ranma two told Ranma while looking at the outfit and using a hand to hold and examine its very short skirt.

"If the old leach ever sees me in that, I'll never get rid of him." Ranma told Ranma two.

"Well you did get quite creative on his ass once he found you like this, but you're right, he just kept coming back for more, no matter what you did to him." Ranma two said shaking her head.

"And the Curse?" Ranma as fearfully.

"Is not locked thank god." Ranma two said.

"Shawoo." Ranma breathed in relief.

"But your views on the curse eventually do change Ranma." Ranma two said.

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked in fear again.

"Well, since you need to be in your cursed form to actually do your job as the guardian of time and the fact that this place only allows two things in it, the Time Gates themselves and a version of Sailor Pluto, and you have to be a female to get here and be one to operate the Time Gate here that you came here to see and then be one to actually leave here, you thus have to spend a lot of time as one. I mean you have spent years here. And with nothing other then yourself or a version of you allowed here, you spend quite the amount of time as a female." Ranma two explained to Ranma.

"I can't bring anything with me like hot water?" Ranma asked.

"Nope. Besides one of the things I have to teach you is how to control the curse." Ranma two said.

"Then that also means no food?" Ranma asked going wide eyed at the thought of that.

"Yeah." Ranma two said frowning.

"I'll die!" Ranma screamed.

"Nah. Time doesn't flow here, so you can't starve here. Although once you had to spend about a hundred and fifty years in here researching something. You still weren't done by that time, but you couldn't concentrate due to everything reminding you of fried chicken" Ranma two chuckled. "So you took a break. And that's how Kentucky Fried Chicken was born." Ranma two laughed.

"You started that?" Ranma asked.

"Nah, you just gave the secret original recipe to the guy who did, and was his taste tester on his first few tries. Then you left and came here for more research. Good chicken though." Ranma two said looking far off.

"Well enough is enough. We have to start getting you trained. Should only take a decade or so." Ranma two told Ranma who gulped, wondering what the hell she had gotten herself into now.

Phoenix Mountain: the present: again

In truth it had taken eleven years three months twenty seven days five hours thirty two minutes and twelve seconds for Ranma to be able to reinsert her self at the moment of her departure.

Ranma had learned a lot from her future self. And not all of it was how to control the powers of the Senshi of Time. They took breaks to spar, where the Ranma of the future definitely had the upper hand. Oh Ranma made her future self work for it, but she never beat her future self. Not surprising really. And then her future self taught her new moves.

Ranma's future self also taught Ranma how to control the curse. A very useful thing. And Ranma's future self put Ranma on the road of acceptance of the curse as well. They also took breaks to teach Ranma academically and the true facts of life combined with the beginnings of some slight common sense.

Ranma was now ready academically to enter collage. And had a plan to do so with her poor grades. She'd just take an equivalency test upon returning to Nerima, claiming the poor environment and prejudice of Furinkan Koukou did not reflect her true abilities.

Then she planed to go into Phys Ed to not only get a license to own and teach in a dojo, she would become a girl's gym teacher as well at Juban high. Her female form would be needed there, but at her own dojo she could use either form as needed.

But first she needed to beat this idiot that jokingly called it's self a God. Calling on the cold of the magical staff she was holding, she through a modified Hiryu Shoten Ha at Saffron, ending the threat. Then she played out the part of a person she no longer truly was.

Juban High: Four years latter.

Here she was. Four years ago she managed to get out of Nerima and end every engagement her father made for her honorably. And she got the Amazon's off her back as well with some veiled threats and a few deals. Four years ago she got herself legally listed as being both male and female as she could be either as she chose to be. Four years ago she entered collage as some one who could be either a man or a woman and used that ability to the best effect she could. Two years ago she had opened her own dojo. Now she stood outside Juban high as the new Girls Gym Teacher.

Ranma had gotten used to the curse. While she still preferred being male, her duty made it so she spent a fair amount of real time as a female. And let's not even go into the abstract time she spends as one. Thus when she's male, she truly enjoys it to the best of her ability, for she still prefers her male form.

Squaring her shoulders she went into the campus and set out to find the gym. For soon a Usagi Taskino would become Sailor Moon. And then gather four more of the past Senshi's children to become the new Senshi of their planets. A week after the five girls all get together as a team is when Ranma had decided to introduce her self to them. for until then the threats would not be that great. But it was then that they would need training that only she could provide for the future to stay bright.

Ranma wasn't truly worried about these girls though. It was the other Senshi that would appear later that truly worried her. How to stop what shouldn't happen yet let what must happen, happen? She decided to stop worrying for now about that and start worrying on how she was going to teach a bunch of girls who most likely do not want to learn this stuff self defense. For that was her major curriculum was to be, self defense classes for teenage girls. Ranma shivered at the thought as she entered the Gym at seven in the morning to set up.

AN: So Ranma's not locked, prefers the male side, yet for many reasons has to be female a fair amount. A change of pace for me, no? Well see you again some time. Oh and for those of you following multiple stories of mine, check out my author's page, where I have split my fics into four categories, high priority mid priority, low priority and on hold. And as you can guess, the higher a category it is in, the more likely a fic will be updated.


	2. REMEMBERING THE PAST AND PLANING FOR THE

AN1: I am obviously NOT following the Canon Sailor Moon Time Line. In fact, I'll say what has become my standard motto when I write one of my heavy AU rewrites, and that is ''Canon'? What is this 'Canon' you speak of? I know not of this 'Canon'!'

Really, this is going to be a sorta far out AU, so,… don't expect the canon Sailor Moon Story Line, I'm changing a hell of a lot of it. I LIKE heavy AU's, and that's what I mostly write. So, sorry if you canon cops don't like that, but I'm warning you now so you can just skip this if need be.

Ok, now that that's out of the way, we can move on to more important things, like the dang fool story. YAY!!!

AN2: I really don't know much on how Japanese Jr. high school's, high schools, college's and universities are set up, so I'm using their American equivalents where needed.

AN3: As to some of the content in the first scene, I'll admit it. I unleashed my inner fanboy on so many different levels. But it's all good, right?

AN4: I am still sick, and to top it off, my new doctor can't get my old records for some of the tests he wants to put me through that I've already gone through so he can do a comparison between the two results from my old doctors. Thus stalling all my tests and pissing me and him off. I just want to get better damn it!

Disclaimer Part 2: If you even think I own the Capcom Corporation, and all the sub branches of it, and thus have all those trillions of dollars available to me, then you, my dear sir, are an idiot.

TIME AND TIME AGAIN

CHAPTER TWO

REMEMBERING THE PAST AND PLANING FOR THE FUTURE

Juban Jr. High's girl's gym: Ranma's new office: five minutes past seven in the morning

Ranma was just starting to set up her office when the phone rang. "Hello Ranma." A sultry sounding female voice said.

Ranma repressed a shiver and said "Hi Nabs."

"You do realize that you are the only one who can call me that without severe retribution, right?" Nabiki asked in a slightly amused tone of voice.

"Yeah. That's why I do it so often." Ranma admitted, thinking back on the past. Being a year ahead of her, Nabiki was already a year into collage when Ranma started. They were both going to Tokyo University, where Nabiki was studying business. She was now in her second year of Graduate school in the hopes of getting her masters. She had also remarkably gotten an internship with Capcom. An amusing story there too. Nabiki had never played video games before, especially not the fighting games which Capcom was very famous for. She is currently on the marketing team for their newest fighting game, for they are making a new fighting game franchise, and when she first saw some of the game's concept demo, she had said something. Something sorta stupid. Just what she had said she can't remember to this day, but it was something along the lines of 'Ranma could do that so much better.'

A designer had overheard her and asked harshly what she meant. So she quickly explained that she knew a guy who could do Ki blasts. After much disbelief, another designer asked 'Ranma? You don't mean Ranma Saotome do you?' This guy had apparently heard of him somehow. And he kinda of believed her. It turns out he had a nephew that had went to Furinkan Koukou with Ranma or something like that.

So, to make a long story short, last year she approached her, for Ranma was in her female form at the time, and asked her if she'd like to make a little extra money by being a, realism, advisor for a fighting video game that Capcom was making. Ranma, in need of some extra cash, said 'Sure.'

And she was still advising them. After showing them that both she and he could manipulate Ki, they were ecstatic. In fact, they were so ecstatic that they were putting both of Ranma's form's likenesses into the game as playable characters. Ranma looked to make a good amount of yen off that.

Also in that time, Ranma had gotten to know Nabiki better, and now that she wasn't using him/her as her personal cash cow, well not in a negative way that is, they had started dating. They did keep this from their parents and family, well except Kasumi that is.

"So, how is your first day going?" Nabiki asked Ranma.

"Well I'm only now seven minutes into it, but it's been ok so far. I'm just dreading teaching these girls their self defense classes. I mean I can't make them take it seriously if they don't want to, and if they don't, well they could get,… hurt." Ranma said with a slow wince.

"Well, I'd suggest that you show off a bit a first Ranma. If they see what taking things and you seriously CAN lead to, you might get them to pay a bit more attention." Nabiki told Ranma.

"True." Ranma admitted with a slight chuckle. "I wonder what would happen if they saw me and Ryoga really go at it?" Ranma then asked with a bigger chuckle. Ranma had not only patched things up with the Lost Boy, who was now more like the Lost Man, but she had introduced him to the people at Capcom as well. He was also a 'realism' advisor and his likeness would be in that game as well. As an unlockable sub boss. Their rivalry had been taken into the digital realm, and it was surprisingly, or not, more or less the same. The Anything Goes and The Hibiki Style of Video Game Domination had been born. And everyone at Capcom that had witnessed this was afraid. Very, very afraid.

"Hmm, maybe you could show them that later. Either when you think they could use some inspiration, or when some of them need some ego downers." Nabiki smirked over the line.

"Hmm, good call." Rama said with a laugh. Ranma then looked up at the clock, saw it was seven ten and said "Well I've got a meeting with the principal in five minutes to show him the outline of just what I'll be teaching. Talk to you soon."

"Ok, I gotta get to work too. Got to make sure that this game is a huge success. Or you and Ryoga will kill me for the loss of seeing yourselves in the sequels." Nabiki said in a joking tone of voice.

"You got that right!" Ranma laughed and then she said "Well see you tonight."

"Yeah, see you then. Sorry I can't go out to dinner tonight though." Nabiki then said while sounding kinda sad.

"Ah, that's ok. We'll celebrate my new job a little later" Ranma told Nabiki cheerfully. In all truth, it was Nabiki who wanted to go out and celebrate Ranma's new job, not Ranma.

"Sure." Nabiki said. Then she said "Well, here comes the rest of the team and my boss, so bye Ranma." Nabiki said hanging up.

Ranma then hung up and snatched up her lesson plan and sped off to the principal's office to show him the plans.

Juban Jr. High: outside the principal's office: seven forty two in the morning

Ranma muttered darkly as she marched away from the principal, Mr. Nakio's, office "Gee, it's not like I want to teach them the Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken or the Bakusai Tenketsu or anything. And it's definitely not like I want to teach them the Neko-Ken! I just want some good old fashioned strength and endurance training! How dare he say we're not running a boot camp here! I know that! Stupid overprotective jerk! It's not like I'd let them get hurt! Well hopefully all the parents will just sign the permission slips so I can teach them this. Otherwise I'll be teaching two separate groups, and one will be MUCH better trained then the other. Stupid overprotective bosses." Ranma muttered as she walked into her office and slammed the door.

Juban Jr. High's girl's gym: outside the gym: during Ranma's first class

"Ok girls, LISTEN UP!" Ranma bellowed as she brought her class to order. "I am the new female gym teacher. My name is Miss. Saotome! My main curriculum for you will be a self defense course!" Now softening her voice, since she now had their undivided attention, she said "Unfortunately, my planned course needs parental approval, so here are permission slips to take it. If it is not signed, you will not be learning any self defense, and to get a grade from my class must join a sports team instead. It is your and your parent's choice of course on what you wish to do. To hopefully help you make such a choice, I will demonstrate for you the level I expect you to be at in one semester under me." Ranma stated. And then she proceeded to do so. Afterwards the permission slips seemed to just fly out of her hands as Ranma just stood there and smirked.

This scene repeated it's self over and over for all school day long.

Outside a jewelry store: on the roof across from it: at about ten thirty at night

Ranma Saotome, in her guise as Sailor Pluto, watched with white knuckled frustration as she observed the, confrontation, between her Princess Usagi, and the Daimon. It was over kinda of quickly, but yet…

"Princess, I have GOT to work on a LOT with you." Ranma, eh, err, Sailor Pluto I mean, said with a shake of her head. "That was just too close. Luna, you had better teach her better, or you and I will have some WORDS in a few weeks." Sailor Pluto said as she opened a portal and stepped through it, leaving the scene since her Princess was long gone.

She arrived and de-transformed at her apartment. Nabiki was already home, and having seen Ranma do this many times before, didn't even raise an eyebrow, unlike the first time she had seen it.

"So, how'd the kid do?" Nabiki asked as Ranma winced while going over towards his/her bedroom. While they did live together, they weren't quite at the point that they were sharing a room, yet. Nabiki thought it would only be a few more months for that to happen. Seeing the wince as Ranma disappeared into her bedroom she called out "That bad huh?"

He returned to the living room and said "Well, she didn't die." And then he sighed and sat down in an easy chair next to the one Nabiki was working in. "I have definitely got my work cut out for me in training her though." Ranma said with a shake of his head.

"Oh." Nabiki said with some sympathy. "Well, maybe this will cheer you up a bit." Nabiki said with a smirk.

"What?" Ranma asked curiously.

"The story team has finally decided on Ranma and Ranko Tsuwamono's backgrounds." Nabiki said with a smirk.

"Huh?" Ranma asked sounding confused.

"Honestly Ranma." Nabiki said with a sigh. "You do know that one of the reasons that Capcom's fighting games are so popular and they make so much money off not only them, but all the movies, Anime's, Manga's and other merchandising is because they give all their games a very detailed story line, right?" Nabiki patiently asked of Ranma.

"Yeah, I knew that. They explained that to me a long time ago." Ranma said sounding offended.

"Well, Ranma and Ranko Tsuwamono, the two characters that contain your likenesses, and for which you are being paid so they can use, story lines have just been finalized and approved. They thought you'd want to see them, so they asked me to give them to you." Nabiki said with a smirk.

"Oh, ok." Ranma then shook his head and said "Sorry, but it's been a long day Nabs. I can't teach anyone I don't get parental permission from. You helped me go over that plan to make sure it would be approved and that I didn't go overboard, and they still want the parents to say its ok to save their buts if a kid gets hurt." Ranma said shaking his head. "And then I had a long day of watching her. It was so hard not to come to her rescue." Ranma admitted. "Well can I see them?" Ranma then asked.

"Here." Nabiki said while handing over to folders.

Ranma looked at the two folders containing the background stories and concept art of the characters based on him and her, and after reading it said "Wow. I didn't think I'd have that prominent a role in the story of this game."

"Yeah, well since they based their moves off yours, they are pretty, how do they refer to it, ah yes, hi-tier characters, so they made your characters brother and sister and studying the rival school and the rivals of the two of the three main heroes." Nabiki said with a smirk. "You're not quite the 'Badguys' you're more along the lines of this game's, hmm, 'Anti-Heroes' characters." Nabiki said with a smirk.

Ranma looked at the documents one more time and said "I can live with this. So in the story Ranma and Ranko lose to the big bad boss, but weaken him enough for the hero's to kick the crap out of him. Eh, ok." Ranma said and then he did a double take and started laughing.

"What's so funny Ranma?" Nabiki asked.

"I just saw how Ryoga's character was reformed in this game." Ranma said with a snicker. "Ranko beats the ever loving snot out of him, and it love at first loss for him!" Ranma said with a chuckle.

Nabiki started laughing and said "I don't think he's going to be too pleased with that!"

After a little more chuckling between the two of them, Ranma stood up and asked Nabiki "You have dinner yet?"

"Uh, no." Nabiki said sounding kind of embarrassed.

"Well, I'll make enough for the both of us then." Ranma told her and he went into the kitchen.

EAN: I'll admit it, at first, I just threw in Capcom as a lark to have somewhere that Nabiki was interning. But it grew a life of its own, and now is a part of the story. It will pop up here and there in the fic some more. But I doubt it will ever be as, prominent, as it was in this chapter again. Or very rarely that is.


End file.
